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For a bit of extra motivation to push harder on our screenplays – and as an excuse to spend some time thinking about my favorite Hollywood area hotels – this month’s blog lists five great Los Angeles locales to celebrate a big break.
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The Beverly Hilton
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This unassuming edifice at the intersection of Wilshire and Santa Monica is the home of the Golden Globes. They have a large circular driveway where they’ve been known to park their guests’ most exotic rides for all to gawk at. So if you’ve just sold a screenplay, you can research the hot new car you plan to buy right outside the spacious main lobby. I saw a Bugatti there once. If that’s the one you pick, you’ll have to sell a few more scripts.
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The Hotel Bel-Air
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This famous La La Land lodge offers “out of the fray quiet elegance”. It has a simple round pool – nearly empty and silent the one time I stayed there. There was an equally noiseless herb garden with the most amazing aromas – oregano and basil melding with the nearby lavender and bougainvillea. It’s a place to sit back, listen to your dreams and smell victory.
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The Beverly Wilshire
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I never actually stayed here, but I attended an industry event inside its hallowed walls at the south end of Rodeo Drive. The ornate arched entryway is grand. You walk past pillars framing impeccably clean windows into a world of luxury and privilege. This is the hotel where they filmed the movie Pretty Woman – you know, the one where Julia Roberts plays a hooker who falls in love with her john. Hoist a drink here with your fellow screenwriters and toast to prostituting your soul to Hollywood.
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The Beverly Hills Hotel
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I love this place. It’s pure pink panache tucked in among a rainforest of semi-tropical foliage. There’s something so old-school glam about the setting, it makes for an amazing spot to sit poolside on a plush chaise lounge and tweak your latest script. And yes, it’s very likely you’ll dine near someone famous in the Polo Lounge. My wife and I sat ten feet from Diane Keaton. Maybe, in a few years, someone will be able to say they sat ten feet from you.
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The Chateau Marmont
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You’ve probably heard the old saying about this storied Sunset Strip hotel: “If you must get in trouble, do it at the Chateau Marmont.” That idea always appealed to me. This hilltop gothic palace is the place to party when you really have a reason to let loose. I’ve never stepped foot on the grounds. I vowed not to until I’ve done everything I wanted to in screenwriting. I haven’t done that yet – not even close. I’m not even sure what it will look like, but I’ll know it when it happens. And when it does – or if my writing career ever tanks for good – you’ll find me at the Chateau Marmont getting in trouble.
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